Improving National Park Service communication before and after natural disasters: Lessons learned from Hurricane Sandy planning and response
Menezes S, Southern K, McDuffie K, Birk M. 2019. Improving National Park Service communication before and after natural disasters: Lessons learned from Hurricane Sandy planning and response. Natural Resource Report. NPS/NCBN/NRR—2019/1935. National Park Service. Fort Collins, Colorado
Hurricane Sandy struck the Northeastern United States on October 25, 2012. Although it had technically been downgraded to a tropical storm by the time it made landfall, “Superstorm Sandy” inflicted significant damage along much of the Eastern seaboard, including three National Parks: Assateague Island National Seashore (ASIS), Fire Island National Seashore (FIIS), and Gateway National Recreation Area (GATE). Hurricane Sandy posed tremendous challenges for National Park Service (NPS) staff, from managing basic logistics to preventing and responding to mpacted cultural and natural resources. As a result, some aspects of NPS storm preparation and recovery communication—both internal, among NPS staff, and external, between NPS staff and other non-NPS stakeholders—were less than optimal. As part of two related cooperative agreements between the NPS and the University of Rhode Island (URI), URI’s Metcalf Institute for Marine & Environmental Reporting (Metcalf Institute) conducted a detailed survey of Park personnel in late 2014 to assess the successes, shortfalls, and lessons learned by staff at ASIS, FIIS, and GATE. This survey was followed by in-person workshops with NPS staff to gather their insights, comments, and suggestions for developing communication strategies and activities in advance of future hurricanes or other natural disasters. This report provides a summary of the survey data, staff input, and general recommendations. The recommendations outline strategies and processes for maximizing the effectiveness of NPS communication with varied audiences before and after major natural disasters. While the recommendations are based on the Hurricane Sandy-specific experiences of ASIS, FIIS, and GATE staff, it is likely that many of these tools will be suitable for other parks as they prepare, update, and implement emergency preparedness plans.
- Type
- Published Report
- Authors
- Menezes, Sunshine; Southern, Karen; McDuffie, Katharine; Birk, Matthew
- Date of Issue
- 2019-06
- Publisher
- National Park Service
- Units
- ASIS , FIIS , GATE , NCBN , NRSS
- Keywords
- “Superstorm Sandy”, 2263532, ASIS, Assateague Island National Seashore, communication strategies, cultural and natural resources, emergency preparedness plans, FIIS, Fire Island National Seashore, GATE, Gateway National Recreation Area, general recommendations, Hurricane Sandy, lessons learned, Metcalf Institute, Metcalf Institute for Marine & Environmental Reporting, natural disasters, NCBN, Northeast Coastal and Barrier Network, Northeastern United States, recovery communication, staff input, storm preparation, survey data, University of Rhode Island, URI